Today we are thinking first and foremost of the family and friends of George Floyd, and of their Minneapolis community which has had to endure the nightmare of witnessing the brutal murder of a family member and neighbor, and the additional trauma of this trial.
Our hope is that this verdict brings some measure of relief, comfort, and a starting point for healing for Floyd’s loved ones, and for Black families and communities who have particularly borne the weight and trauma of a country finally forced to begin reckoning with our history of racism.
Today’s guilty verdict provides a measure of accountability for a deeply unjust death, and is a step toward justice. But we cannot forget that true justice would see George Floyd alive today.
Accountability for police violence is still too rare. And for Black and Brown communities across the country, the nightmare and loss experienced by George Floyd’s family is too common and too persistent a threat. We must continue the work of confronting systemic racism in policing, end qualified immunity, and invest in our communities to create a system of public safety that is focused on safety for all rather than inherently deadly to some.
GLAD joined more than 60 partner organizations in signing on to a public comment submitted to the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology by Fenway Institute, recommending the adoption of standards for adding sexual orientation and gender identity status, as well as intersex status and preferred name and pronouns, to health data collection. Adoption of these recommendations would make a substantial positive impact on the health data available with respect to LGBTQ people.
For the first time in over a decade, our country has a real chance to protect LGBTQ+ Americans and expand civil rights for everyone by passing the Equality Act. The Equality Act passed the House and has the full support of President Biden. The last hurdle: The Senate.
Zoom with your Senator’s office and let them know that you support the Equality Act. Your participation matters. The time is now to expand protections for LGBTQ people, women, people of color, and people of minority faiths.
We share in the anguish and anger over the death this week of another Black man – a son, father, brother, friend, and partner – at the hands of a white police officer. Our hearts are with Daunte Wright’s family and the community in Minneapolis, and with every Black family across the country who are already exhausted, furious, and heartbroken living through the trial of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd just one year ago.
Daunte Wright’s death during a traffic stop should not have happened. This incident, like far too many others, highlights the embedded anti-Black racism that persists in our institutions and impacts all of us. And it demonstrates – once again – the urgent need to reenvision and rework our system of policing and public safety, so that it is focused on safety for all and not inherently deadly to some.
On April 11, 2001, seven courageous couples and GLAD made history when we filed جودريدج ضد وزارة الصحة العامة. We invite you to celebrate this anniversary that was the first step toward marriage equality in Massachusetts and, eventually, the nation.
Watch our video commemorating the tenth anniversary of our victory in Massachusetts – Goodridge at 10.
We know that we can win enormous victories for LGBTQ justice, just like we did with marriage equality. Right now we have another chance to expand nondiscrimination protections by passing the Equality Act.
This critical legislation builds on the promise of the Civil Rights Act to cover more vulnerable Americans than ever before. Join us in the next crucial opportunity to expand discrimination protections for LGBTQ people, women, people of color, and people of minority faiths. Take action for your community and beyond:
Thank you for your support as we work together toward justice and equality for all Americans. And thank you to the couples who put their lives and love in the spotlight to push our movement forward. Happy anniversary!
Celebrate this important milestone with us, and help make history one more time. Make a gift today.
UPDATE: June 23, 2021 – Victory! On June 23rd, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of high school student B.L. in Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. This important ruling protects students’ freedom of speech off-campus, and is especially significant for students of historically marginalized backgrounds who experience disproportionate levels of discipline and scrutiny at school. Read the ruling here.
GLAD joined a friend-of-the-court brief in Mahanoy v. B.L., a case currently before the U.S. Supreme Court. The brief raises important issues about the potential impact of the Court’s decision in this case on students from historically marginalized backgrounds who experience disproportionate levels of harassment and school discipline, including LGBTQ students and students of color. We urge the Court to issue a ruling that allows schools to address off-campus speech that targets and invades the rights of students, but does not enable over-policing of out of school free speech.
Today, the Pentagon is set to issue new guidance on transgender service members that, as reported, rolls back Trump-era restrictions on enlistment and service by qualified transgender people. This step reinstates rules and policies that had been put in place originally by Secretary Ash Carter that equalize terms of service for transgender people. In response to this announcement of the anticipated guidance, transgender experts issued the following statements:
“It’s a relief to see the Pentagon releasing new policy guidelines reinforcing the end of the transgender military ban, and it’s especially meaningful to see this policy announced today, on Transgender Day of Visibility,” said Nicolas Talbott, an aspiring service member who challenged the transgender military ban. “I look forward to seeing the military’s core values of fairness and respect reflected in a clear policy that welcomes all people who are qualified and willing to serve and I’m more confident than ever that when I apply to enlist, I will be judged on my skills and my accomplishments, instead of my transgender status, which has nothing to do with my ability to serve.”
“With this new set of regulations, the military is putting an end to an ugly and shameful chapter in our nation’s history and once again embracing our nation’s highest ideals of equal opportunity for all. The new policies recognize the contributions of transgender service members and will increase the strength and stability of our armed forces,” said Shannon Minter, Legal Director at National Center for Lesbian Rights. “Increasing troops’ access to gender-affirming medical care will help transgender service members focus on their work, so they can do the best they can at their job, instead of having to worry about red tape stopping them from getting the health care they need.”
“With this policy, the Pentagon is setting a clear example for our federal government when it comes to fairness and equal opportunity,” said Jennifer Levi, Director of Transgender Rights Project at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD). “These policy changes are an important step toward strengthening the military. Of course, we still need comprehensive federal nondiscrimination protections like the Equality Act so that transgender service members are able to live with freedom and dignity whether in uniform or in civilian life.”
This Women’s History Month, we have chosen to honor some of the innumerable LGBTQ women, non-binary people, and femmes who have impacted the world throughout history. Our community is powerful, and each person has their own remarkable part to play. We celebrate them this month, and all year long: those who came before us, or are making history right now. At GLAD we remain committed to uplifting these voices and building a world that celebrates them unreservedly.
مارشا ب. جونسون
Marsha P. Johnson (August 24, 1945 – July 6, 1992) was an outspoken gay liberation activist and self-identified drag queen. Along with her close friend سيلفيا ريفيرا, she was one of the key people involved in the 1969 Stonewall uprising. Stories differ on whether she threw a brick or threw a shot glass, but she became a symbol involved with the event to this day. A popular member of the New York Art scene, she worked with Andy Warhol and as a drag performer. After working in the Gay Liberation Front, Marsha co-founded Street Transvestites Action Revolutionaries (S.T.A.R.). She worked with STAR for years, founding the STAR House, a shelter for gender-nonconforming and transgender youth. She moved specifically into AIDS-related activism in the 1980s, working with groups like ACT UP.
Marsha was a cornerstone of the queer community in New York and beyond until she died in July of 1992. Her death was originally ruled a suicide, but after extensive pressure from her close friends and family, advocacy groups, and fellow activists, it was reopened as a possible homicide. Since her passing, she remains one of the most well-known figures in the queer community. Her story, recently memorialized in the documentary “The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson,” inspired many activists and LGBTQ people today to fight for what they believe in. In her memory, the Marsha P. Johnson Foundation fights for the equality and rights of Black transgender individuals.
Pragati Singh
Pragati Singh is an activist and one of the preeminent leaders of the asexual rights movement in India. She began her career as a maternal health doctor, when she discovered that there were no online communities for anyone on the asexual spectrum in India. She created Indian Aces, a group designed to help foster community and support. Dr. Singh also conducted research to identify the unique challenges and hopes of India’s asexual community. She was able to push against a rigid medical establishment to get her research published, helping to raise awareness of people on the ace spectrum in both the medical field and the country at large. Her groundbreaking work enabled her to present at international conferences and was chosen to be one of the BBC’s 100 Women of the Year in 2019. She continues to work to provide a space and a voice for the ace community in India. Read Dr. Singh’s interview with Asexual Magazine here.
Christine Jorgenson
Christine Jorgenson (May 30, 1926 – May 3, 1989) was the first person in the United States widely known to have received gender-confirming surgery. The Bronx native and World War II veteran received medical care in Denmark in 1952 and immediately became a media sensation. Christine originally intended to live a private life but realized she had a platform to speak up. She became a performer, went on talk shows and radio shows, and wrote her autobiography. From the ’60s to the ‘80s, she toured college campuses and other venues to speak about issues of transgender rights. Christine passed away in 1989 from cancer, but her legacy helped change the way people thought about LGBTQ people. Her fame brought about visibility at a time when there were very few people living openly as transgender and shaped the national discussion on gender identity.
Tammy Baldwin
Tammy Baldwin was the first openly gay person to be elected to both chambers of Congress. Baldwin has been an advocate for LGBTQ rights, access to healthcare, and student debt relief. She introduced the Ending LGBT Health Disparities Act which sought to fund research and cultural competence for LGBTQ healthcare. She has regularly fought for these issues, including supporting the upcoming Equality Act, which would close many gaps in nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ individuals, women, people of color, and people of minority faiths.
Brenda Howard
Brenda Howard (December 24, 1946 – June 28, 2005) was heavily involved in planning the first Pride event in 1970 after coordinating rallies to commemorate the 1-month, 1-year, and subsequent anniversaries of the Stonewall Rebellion of 1969. Known by some as “Mother of Pride,” Brenda is widely credited with coming up with the modern idea of the week-long pride event that we see celebrated internationally. Initially active in the feminist and antiwar movements, in 1987 she turned more towards bisexual-specific organizing with organizations like BiNet USA و ال New York Area Bisexual Network. She helped plan dozens of marches and brought issues of bisexual representation to the forefront in the queer community, and worked for kink and polyamory visibility. Sadly, she passed away from cancer in 2005, but her legacy lives on Pride celebrations worldwide.
Kim Coco Iwamoto
Kim Coco Iwamoto is a politician from Hawaii. From both her lived experience as a transgender individual and her grandparents’ experience as survivors of Japanese internment in California, she grew up no stranger to the pressing need to protect all people’s rights. To this end, she served on the Hawaii Board of Education, and later on the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission. This made Kim the first openly transgender person elected to statewide office in the country. She ran both for Lieutenant Governor and State Representative, only narrowly losing both races. Kim continues to push the boundaries for the Asian-American LGBTQ community and fights to represent all people’s interests in her work, including leading advocacy efforts for LGBTQ youth experiencing homelessness in Hawaii.
Janet Mock
Janet Mock is a transgender rights advocate, writer, and media producer. Originally from Hawaii, she worked as the staff editor for People magazine, where she came out as transgender. She wrote her first autobiography in 2012, which began her entry into more overt advocacy by speaking on her experience transitioning as a teen in Hawaii. She worked for a medley of media organizations and formats before settling into screenwriting. After writing her second autobiography, she began writing the critically-acclaimed show Pose on FX. Pose was groundbreaking for casting trans actors to play trans characters and accurately depicting the Ballroom scene of 1980’s New York. Janet is the first openly transgender woman of color to write a television episode and secure a major studio deal. Her work on and off-screen has increased crucial transgender representation in the media.
Amazin LeThi
Born in Saigon, Amazin LeThi is a fierce advocate for LGBTQ kids in sports. Amazin was adopted into a white family in Australia and began her lifelong passion for athletics as a bodybuilder at age 6. She was bullied both for being Asian and LGBTQ, and her work at the intersection of these identities has been influential. She founded the Amazin LeThi Foundation, which works to prevent anti-LGBTQ and anti-AIDS discrimination. She works tirelessly for the inclusion of LGBTQ people in sports and has worked publicly to further queer Asian representation in sports and the media with Athlete Ally, the BBC, and the Obama White House, among many others.
Angela Davis
Angela Davis is a longtime activist, first in the movement against the Vietnam War and as a defining second-wave Black feminist. A self-identified, long-time Communist, she has been a vocal advocate for prison abolition and alternatives to incarceration. Angela has been an educator for many years, lecturing on feminism at colleges across the globe. Through her work in these movements, Davis has consistently advocated for women and the LGBTQ community, even to the point of breaking with other leaders who were not listening to those voices. She has been a leading advocate for intersectional advocacy and activism and has led the field by example. She lives now with her long-time partner and fellow UC Santa Cruz professor Gina Dent.
Jennicet Gutierrez
Jennicet Gutierrez is an advocate for the trans undocumented community. Jennicet moved to the US at 15, learning English and being subjected to intolerance simultaneously. Famously, she interrupted President Obama during an LGBTQ Pride reception to raise the issue of his administration’s treatment of transgender immigrants. This generated a national conversation on the issue and the politics of respectability in the LGBTQ movement. She was a founding member of La Familia: Trans Queer Liberation Movement, an organization that works at the local and national levels to achieve the collective liberation of trans, queer, and gender-expansive Latinx people.
Yasmin Benoit
Yasmin Benoit is an asexual and aromantic activist in the UK. She is one of the first and most successful Black alternative models. Pushing into a white-dominated field with Eurocentric standards of beauty, she got many questions from journalists and had to advocate for herself from the beginning of her career. As a model, she has also gotten many questions about her asexuality and fights many misconceptions about the ace community. Benoit has said in interviews, “I’m not trying to sell myself, I’m selling a product,” a refrain she has had to repeat over her career. She has worked with AVEN, the Asexuality Visibility and Education Network (where she now serves on the Board of Directors), to increase the knowledge of and acceptance for the asexual and aromantic community. She is also lending her perspective to a movement that often is dominated by white voices, showing how diverse the queer community really is.
Deborah Batts
Deborah Batts was the nation’s first openly gay federal judge. She served as an Assistant US Attorney in New York and was a professor at Fordham Law School before she was nominated for the Southern District of New York seat, following the recommendation of Senator Patrick Moynihan. Her confirmation in 1994 made her the first openly lesbian federal judge, not to mention the first African-American lesbian judge. While she never stressed her sexuality, she understood that she was a role model for many. In a 2019 interview, when asked about her thoughts on being a role model, she said “You can certainly be a mentor, someone who encourages people who think that they can’t do it. They can do it.”
Washington, DC — In a historic vote on Wednesday, the U.S. Senate confirmed Dr. Rachel Levine as assistant secretary of health at the Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Levine, an experienced pediatrician who has led Pennsylvania’s Department of Public Health since 2017, is the first openly transgender presidential nominee to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
During her tenure as Pennsylvania’s highest ranking health official and top doctor, Dr. Levine led the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as addressing the opioid and HIV epidemics and increasing the rate of childhood immunization. She has personally worked to raise awareness of LGBTQ issues, where discrimination creates barriers to healthcare access and healthcare quality.
GLAD congratulates Dr. Levine on her confirmation to this role. She has the opportunity to make an immense positive impact on the health of LGBTQ people, people living with HIV, and Americans as a whole. As our nation continues to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, we will be well-served by Dr. Levine’s experience and expertise, as well as her commitment to ensuring that all LGBTQ people can access the healthcare they need. Dr. Levine’s confirmation and leading role at our nation’s federal health agency will also inspire a new generation of transgender youth by showing that there are no limits to what they can achieve.
ال Freedom & Opportunity For All campaign launches with support from hundreds of nation’s top leaders in civil rights, faith, education, health care, and advocacy. The campaign will continue growing nationwide support for federal anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people, women, people of color, and people of all faiths.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, a new national campaign advocating for urgent passage of the Equality Act launched with support from hundreds of the nation’s top leaders in civil rights, faith, education, health care, and advocacy. The Freedom & Opportunity For Allcampaign will continue growing the nationwide effort (already supported by hundreds of the nation’s top business leaders) advocating for the Equality Act — historic federal legislation that would modernize and improve our nation’s civil rights laws by including explicit, permanent protections for LGBTQ people, as well as women, people of color, and people of all faiths. The Equality Act passed the House with bipartisan support last month and had its first-ever hearing in the Senate last week.
The campaign — launching with an initial investment of $4 million that will grow to eight figures as the campaign continues beyond the launch and initial phases — will collaborate closely with hundreds of supporting organizations to harness the grassroots energy of millions of members across the country. With the support of these organizations, the campaign will work to grow support for the Equality Act, educate Americans on the urgent need for the Equality Act, and engage and mobilize supporters to take action and reach out to their lawmakers. The campaign will do this through a mix of activities including legislative advocacy and lobbying, building and implementing national advertising campaigns, and executing traditional communications tactics and social media campaigns.
Broad, Overwhelming Support for the Equality Act
Freedom & Opportunity For All — co-founded and led by 16 of the nation’s leading advocates for equality — reflects the broad and overwhelming support for the Equality Act mirrored in communities across the country, and its announcement comes on the heels of new polling from Hart Research Associates finding that 70 percent of Americans (including 50 percent of Republicans) support the Equality Act.
To date, a majority of Americans, hundreds of members of Congress, hundreds of advocacy organizations, and more than 60 business associations — including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers — have endorsed the Equality Act. Nearly 400 major U.S. companies — including dozens of Fortune 500 companies such as Coca-Cola, Apple, General Mills, Johnson & Johnson, and Kellogg — have endorsed the Equality Act because they believe it is good for their employees and their businesses. Collectively, these companies have headquarters based in 33 states overseeing operations in all 50 states, and generate a collective revenue of $6.5 trillion. In total, these companies employ more than 13.5 million people across the United States.
Freedom & Opportunity For All is co-founded and led by 16 of the nation’s leading advocates for equality, including Center for American Progress, Equality Federation, Freedom for All Americans, GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, GLSEN, Human Rights Campaign, Lambda Legal, National Black Justice Coalition, National Center for Lesbian Rights, National Center for Transgender Equality, National LGBTQ Task Force, National Women’s Law Center, PFLAG National, SAGE, Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund, and The Trevor Project.
The full list of organizations supporting the Equality Act can be found هنا. Below are quotes from the 16 co-founding organizations of Freedom & Opportunity For All. جانسون وو، Executive Director, GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders:
“This is the moment to pass the Equality Act. Every day we hear the stories of individuals from communities across the country who continue to face discrimination and harassment. Our federal nondiscrimination laws are in place to advance fairness for everyone, and the overwhelming majority of Americans agree it is past time to ensure LGBTQ people are included in those protections. Because it extends nondiscrimination protections for women in public spaces and federal services, addresses the discrimination that people of color and people of minority faiths encounter in such areas as contemporary retail spaces and transportation including car services, and adds clear and explicit protections for LGBTQ people, the Equality Act is the civil rights legislation we need now to move us closer to the promise of freedom and opportunity for all.”
Winnie Stachelberg, Executive Vice President, External Affairs, Center for American Progress:
“We stand at the precipice of history for the LGBTQ community. The Equality Act will finally enshrine into law the fundamental and uncontroversial principles of fairness and dignity for all people, and our coalition is committed to seeing it passed. An overwhelming majority of the American people — as well as lawmakers from both parties, the Biden administration, faith leaders, and corporate giants — support the Equality Act because they recognize that LGBTQ people deserve to be treated fairly and with respect by their employers, health care providers, educators, and civil servants. We stand united to work with the U.S. Senate to fulfill its obligation to the American people to support and defend the rights of everyone equally.”
Fran Hutchins, Executive Director, Equality Federation:
“For far too long, LGBTQ people across this country have been denied basic protections from discrimination simply based on what state or zip code they call home. The Equality Act is much-needed legislation that will ensure a more just and equal America for all of us. That is why Equality Federation is proud to be a founding member of the Freedom & Opportunity For All coalition, formed with the purpose of advocating for swift passage of these needed protections. From California to New York to Alaska to Florida, there is a groundswell of people in state and local communities calling on lawmakers to pass this legislation as soon as possible. We commit to ensuring the public’s demand for passage is heard all across the country.”
Kasey Suffredini, CEO and National Campaign Director, Freedom for All Americans:
“For the first time in nearly 50 years of trying, our nation is poised to ensure our LGBTQ friends, family members, and neighbors are treated with dignity and respect no matter who they are, who they love, or where they live. Majorities of Americans in every state and of every demographic and political ideology support federal LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections, as do hundreds of faith leaders and our nation’s most recognizable corporate brands. America is ready for Congress to pass the Equality Act, and Freedom for All Americans is proud to be working to make the people’s will a reality as a founding member of Freedom & Opportunity For All.”
Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, Interim Executive Director, GLSEN:
“In this transformational moment, as our nation rethinks what our education system can look like amid the pandemic and reopening, we have the opportunity with the Equality Act to implement a robust new commitment to equity in all aspects of education, from school policies to school lunch programs to classroom repairs to curriculum materials. The ongoing pandemic has hit hardest the communities already vulnerable in our school system — including LGBTQ+ students who face unique challenges — and support and protection to the students and families who need it most will create a stronger school community that benefits all students in our system.”
Alphonso David, President, Human Rights Campaign:
“The Equality Act is a pivotal moment in history and serves to be one of the landmark civil rights moments in our country’s long march toward a more perfect union. Today, the United States Senate holds equality for the LGBTQ community in its hands and we plan to engage on all fronts, utilizing all tools to ensure that our voices are heard. More than two-thirds of LGBTQ people face discrimination in this country and the overwhelming bipartisan majority of Americans agree: discriminating against someone for who they are or who they love is simply wrong. We plan to work in coalition to end the discrimination, violence, and injustice that LGBTQ people live with every day and ensure that federal non-discrimination protections finally become the law of the land. The time to pass the Equality Act is now.”
Kevin Jennings, CEO, Lambda Legal:
“Lambda Legal is proud to stand with advocates for LGBTQ people, people of color, women, and immigrants as a part of the Freedom & Opportunity For All coalition to make the Equality Act a reality. Our communities continue to face pervasive, often-devastating discrimination in our everyday lives. Congress needs to close the many civil rights gaps that have left so many of our community members vulnerable, unprotected, and too often defenseless against injustice in virtually every aspect of public life. We deserve dignity and the same rights and protections as everyone else. There has never been an opportunity like the one now to finally get this done.”
David J. Johns, Executive Director, National Black Justice Coalition:
“One of our nation’s foundational promises is freedom, but if we are going to celebrate freedom, it must be for all of us: the white Jewish kid denied a haircut at the only barber shop in town because of their religious beliefs; the Black same gender loving couple given a higher home loan interest rate because of their sexual orientation and race; the interracial couple denied the opportunity to foster or adopt a child because the agency’s bias overshadows its mission to give every child a forever home — freedom from discrimination and the ability to participate in public programs must be universal. All of us includes Black transgender women profiled by police and Black boys murdered under the guise of resembling a suspect. All of us include innocent medical workers like Breonna Taylor killed while sleeping at home in their own beds by police officers paid by taxpayer funded federal law enforcement grants. Discrimination should not be legal in a country with the motto ‘Out of Many, One.’ Passing the Equality Act is necessary if we are to live into our national promise and be who we say we are: The land of the free.”
Imani Rupert-Gordon, Executive Director, المركز الوطني لحقوق المثليات (NCLR):
“NCLR is proud to be joining a coalition of advocates from the LGBTQ, women, people of color, immigration, and faith communities who have all joined the Freedom & Opportunity For All coalition to urge the swift passage of the Equality Act in the Senate. The tragic fact is that the LGBTQ community, especially the most vulnerable Black and transgender individuals, continue to report dramatically higher rates of discrimination in every aspect of their lives. Whether it be housing, healthcare, education, lending, or any other facet of everyday life, no one deserves to be discriminated against or denied services simply because of who they are. The Equality Act would amend the Civil Rights Act to finally ensure that everyone is protected from this pervasive discrimination, which is why the Senate must vote to pass it swiftly and send it to President Biden for his signature.”
Mara Keisling, Executive Director, National Center for Transgender Equality:
“Passing the Equality Act would mean that transgender people could worry less about disrespect, discrimination, and even violence, and we could live our lives as more full members of society. Everyone deserves to be treated with respect. Transgender people, like all people, should be able to count on protection from discrimination no matter what state they call home. It is long past time for Congress to get this done.”
Kierra Johnson, Executive Director, National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund:
“The lives of millions of LGBTQ people in this country and our families would be improved through the Equality Act, best exemplified by the comments of Rep. Marie Newman (D) at the recent Senate Judiciary hearing: ‘No American should have to live a lie… you will feel deep depression, anxiety, and yes, suicidal.’ This is what is at stake for our community. Our lives. Our children’s lives. Our friends’ and families’ lives. The gift and opportunity of this moment is to look deep inside of our collective selves and ask, ‘What are the limits of Love and Justice?’ We believe they are unlimited. We will do the work to prove it and are proud to be part of Freedom & Opportunity For All.”
Fatima Goss Graves, President and CEO, National Women’s Law Center:
“The Equality Act represents a landmark step in the fight against all sex discrimination. The lives of LGBTQ women are marked by discrimination at every step, from the class room to the board room to the locker room, and this bill will strengthen the rights of all women to live free of fear from discrimination. This is especially true of transgender women and LGBTQ women of color, whose risk for violence and abuse is worsened when we deny them full rights under the law. Our commitment to inclusion of transgender women is inseparable from our commitment to safety, dignity, and justice for all women.”
Brian K. Bond, Executive Director, PFLAG National:
“Parents of LGBTQ+ people want for their children what all parents want for their children: The opportunity to live, learn, work, pray, and play safely, fairly, and free from discrimination, harassment, and harm. It is especially painful to see faith used as a weapon to exact such discrimination, when so many parents of LGBTQ+ kids ARE people of faith. PFLAGers in every corner of the country will continue to reach out to their lawmakers and send a clear message: To be a person of faith, and to be a person who is — or loves someone who is — LGBTQ+ are not mutually exclusive; our families matter, we are your constituents, and we support passage of the Equality Act.”
Michael Adams, CEO, SAGE:
“Our elders have taught us that freedom and opportunity advances when people of good will come together. That is why SAGE is proud to lift up our elders’ voices as a co-founder of the coalition to pass the Equality Act.”
Andy Marra, Executive Director, Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund (TLDEF):
“TLDEF is proud to be a founding member of the Freedom & Opportunity For All coalition. For too long, transgender people have experienced discrimination in every aspect of life. The Equality Act will finally provide protections for LGBTQ people nationwide and bring us one enormous step closer towards full legal and lived equality for transgender people. The moment to pass the bill is now, and we are honored to work alongside a bipartisan group of people of faith, business leaders, and civil rights partners to get the job done.”
Amit Paley, CEO and Executive Director, مشروع تريفور:
“The Trevor Project is proud to join the Freedom & Opportunity For All coalition to pass the Equality Act and protect the LGBTQ community from discrimination. When LGBTQ young people are excluded or treated differently solely because of who they are, it can negatively impact their mental health and sense of self. According to The Trevor Project’s research, LGBTQ youth who experienced discrimination in the past year attempted suicide at more than twice the rate of those who did not. It is long past time to grant LGBTQ people the same legal protections as everyone else.”
About the Equality Act
Currently, 29 states do not have laws that explicitly protect LGBTQ people from discrimination. Without the Equality Act, LGBTQ Americans remain vulnerable to being evicted from their homes, kicked out of a business that’s open to the public, denied health care, or denied government services in a majority of states simply because of who they are. The Equality Act would provide clear, consistent non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people across critical areas, including housing, credit, education, public spaces and services, federally funded programs, and jury service. The Equality Act also extends protections to millions of women — who aren’t covered by some existing federal anti-discrimination laws — to ensure they don’t have to live in fear of harassment or discrimination. In addition, it modernizes public accommodations law to provide increased protections to people of color and people of all faiths.
Freedom & Opportunity For All is a national campaign advocating for the urgent passage of the Equality Act — historic federal legislation that would modernize and improve our nation’s civil rights laws by including explicit, permanent protections for LGBTQ people, as well as women, people of color, and people of all faiths.The campaign — supported by hundreds of the nation’s top leaders in civil rights, faith, education, health care, and advocacy — is co-founded and led by 16 of the nation’s leading advocates for equality, including Center for American Progress; Equality Federation; Freedom for All Americans; GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders; GLSEN; Human Rights Campaign; Lambda Legal; National Black Justice Coalition; National Center for Lesbian Rights; National Center for Transgender Equality; National LGBTQ Task Force; National Women’s Law Center; PFLAG National; SAGE; Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund; and The Trevor Project.
أثارت قرارات المحكمة العليا الأخيرة تساؤلاتٍ ملحة حول مجتمع الميم والمصابين بفيروس نقص المناعة البشرية. خط المساعدة القانونية لدينا، GLAD Law Answers، قادر على مساعدتك. تواصل معنا اليوم.
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